Dead Memories
by a7xobssessedfan
Summary: Najoki Takenami is a ten year old girl with no memory before eight. She joins Squad 7 as a request of Kakashi. As she get gets closer to the team, epspecially Sasuke, it seems her memories get more frequent.
1. Chapter 1

I guess I should start with this is my first fanfiction. I was bored during our exams at school so I started writing it and it got this far. Anyway I guess I'll say I don't own anyone but Najoki and Kyo. Plus one or two others in future chapters.

Dead Memories

Squad 7… My first thought for them…weak. They were a bunch of goofballs. Naruto Uzamaki was the worst. He goofed off much more than necessary. I understood why Kakashi has asked me to help. All in all, though, they were a good group. They were good friends. When Kakashi introduced them to m e I could tell none of them were happy I was there. Of course I wasn't happy to be there.

"So we need another girl to make our team better? Seriously? I mean she isn't even our age. She's like ten," Naruto complained. His blue eyes shut and he pouted. I growled a bit.

"I might be young but, I could beat you in a fight any day," I snapped. Kakashi wasn't even paying attention. He was reading his perverted book. Naruto noticed and smiled.

"Oh yeah? Well I'm going to be the next Hokage so I'm not going to be beaten by a ten-year old girl," he shouted. Sakura rolled her green eyes. Sasuke just stood there, arms folded. Since no one was objecting, I accepted. As we fought, it got boring. He wasn't interesting to fight with. So as my final blow, I threw ten shuriken and attached him to the tree behind us.

"So now you see why I'm here. Just don't ever try that again. Next time I won't be afraid to permanently attach you to the tree," I threatened. I didn't keep up the tough macho act for long. Instead, I burst out laughing. "Just kidding. I can't do that to a teammate. Here, I'll help you off the tree." I walked over and plucked the shuriken from his orange jumpsuit. He smiled when he was of f. His bright yellow hair had twigs and leaves in it. I stood ready just in case he attacked.

"You're about as weak as he is. No real ninja offers to help once they defeat their enemy," Sasuke said. I turned to face him, with my defenses up. His ebony eyes and black hair were something I'd seen before. Had I seen him before today? Ignoring that, I snapped at him.

"No, but a real ninja also doesn't abandon his teammate. That's another reason why I'm here. Kakashi said you three act hostile toward each other s o I'm going to try and change that," I said. The look on his face told me he didn't like being proved wrong.

"So you think you'll be able to help with teamwork? What are you anyway? I mean you're pretty bossy to just be a member of our team," he said. I rolled my eyes.

"I'm a Genin, just like you. Some one has to take charge. Kakashi isn't always going to be here so one of us needs to step up and be leader for a bit. From what I've seen, none of you are," I said. After that he kept quite.

"How many teams have you been on?" Sakura asked. I made a face.

"I… I don't know. I can't remember a lot. I lost my memory at about eight or=2 0nine. That's why I know Kakashi. He's trying to help me get at least a little back," I replied. She nodded, but said no more. Now Kakashi put down his perverted book and looked at us.

"Now you see why she's here. She needs some memory and you need a stronger team. It benefits both of you," he said. Sasuke looked at me, but not with hate. Confusion filled his ebony eyes, but when he caught me paying attention to him, he looked away. I'd heard rumors about him being the girls' obsession do I had to look for myself. Black, spiky hair, extremely dull ebony eyes, baggy, dark blue shirt, white shorts that barely went over his knees, and arm warmers over his forearms. Not as good-looking as I'd heard. Plus if he treated girls the same way he treated me, it'd be a wonder why they liked him so much. I had met him before. I just didn't know where. Since I was lost in thought, when I snapped out of it, everyone was looking at me. I turned red.

"Well I don't have a mission today so we'll meet back here tomorrow. Sunrise, don't be late," he said. I rolled my eyes. It wasn't us he had to be worried about. With that Kakashi vanished. We all stood around awkwardly for a moment, until Naruto broke the silence.

"So are we gonna leave or not?" he asked. I smiled and nodded.

"Yeah. I have things to do later so I'm going to go home and take a nap," I said. Naruto turned to me.

"Kakashi-sensei never told us your name. So what is it?" he asked. Really? Kakashi hadn't mentioned my name? Was I really that spacey?

"Najoki… Najoki Takenami," I said. Sasuke tensed as I mentioned my name. W as there something wrong with it? I ignored that. "I'll see you guys tomorrow." I walked off after that. I had a feeling Sasuke knew something from my past I didn't. If he hated me I didn't want to find out. No one bothered to stop me.

My plans for the rest of the day were to go around and see if anything jogged my memory. I don't even remember what happened to cause me to loose it. I only remember waking up with my shoulder burning. That and two people fighting about whether I'd die or not. Kakashi was arguing I wouldn't. A girl argued against him. I closed my eyes. I knew that memory and didn't want to relive it. I went to the forest first. I ran through there until I came to an old abandoned house. Being curious, I walked towards it. It was kinda decaying and at first I was afraid to touch it. Curiosity conquered fear, so I went in. As soon as I went in, I could see a picture right in front of me.

Two boys=2 0stood face20to face. One had long black hair that was pulled back in a neat ponytail. His eyes were a blazing red with three black dots near the center. The other one had short brown hair and blue eyes that were slowly turning yellow. He actually looked like an older male version of me. He was the first to speak.

"Is this really the way to settle things, Itachi?" he asked. A demented smile was plastered on his face. The other boy, Itachi, stood with a bored expression.

"You know this has to be done. You betrayed our village. For that you've put not only yourself, but your little sister too. I can't let this go further," he replied, simply. Sister? What had this boy done? The brown haired boy laughed.

"Ah yes, my sister. She understands this is how our clan is. Our clan has been working with the other village for quite some time now. It's a shame Sasuke can't see what she is. They would be sweet together, don't you think? It's a shame because once I'm gone; it's her turn to carry out our little secret. Since you found out, I really have no choice but to kill you," he said. Sasuke? Itachi's eyes narrowed.

"Not if I kill you first, Kyo," he said and they both charged. I turned away, but looked back when one screamed. Kyo was on his knees in front of Itachi. He was laughing, making both Itachi and me confused.

"Little sister please don't let the Uchiha's win. I know you're in here. We have to carry on what Dad started. Don't let any of them, especially Itachi, tell you you're nothing. When you get older, let the beast control you. It makes you stronger. Finally, don't let Sasuke pull you into a trap. He's not your friend. He's your enemy. Please don't screw up," he said and collapsed. "Goodbye, Najoki."

I was pulled out of the picture and I fell to the floor on my knees. Those two were enemies! Was this why Sasuke was so traumatized by my name? No… Who was the other boy and why…? Was Kyo was the brother Kakashi hinted about at times? What was his crime and why was he punished for it?

Tears leaked out of my eyes and I couldn't stop them. Was this something that was erased? What other secrets did this house hold? At the moment, I didn't want to know. From a distance I heard some one call my name. The voice came closer and was soon recognizable. Kakashi. He stopped behind me and I turned my head. He must have seen something because fear filled the only visible gray-brown eye. After that I fainted.

I woke up, startled. The scene had haunted my dreams. I glanced around. I was at my house, in my own bed. On the pillow was a note. I picked it up. It was from Kakashi.

"Had an emergency. Be back when I'm done. We need to talk," it said. I crumpled it up and set it down. Could I tell him what I'd seen? And what did Sasuke have to do with it? Itachi's relative maybe? I wanted my questions answered so I got out of bed and went back to the house again. It probably had some of the answers I needed.

Surprisingly for me, I remembered the way. This time I wasn't afraid to break the house as I went in. No images appeared this time. I frowned, but went deeper in the house. Near where the boys were standing, I could see faint blood marks on the ground. Probably where Kyo had died. I bent down and ran my fingers over it.

"Hard to tell who really died in here, right Najoki?" Sasuke's voice coldly came from the doorway. I quickly stood and faced him. His usual expressionless face was now full of anger and hate.

"I don't know what you're talking about," I replied. His eyes narrowed.

"You can stop pretending. I know you and your brother had something planned. This is probably another one of your plans. Well you can stop now," he snapped. Now I was mad.

"This isn't an act. I have no idea what you're talking about," I yelled. He scoffed and turned to walk away.

"Just so you know, I wasn't talking about our brothers," he said and walked off.

After he left I finished exploring the house, (with no luck), and went home. Kakashi was waiting for me. He allowed me to sit down before he started asking questions. The obvious one was first.

"Where were you?" he asked. I thought for a moment.

"At the abandoned house in the forest. I wanted to see if it would spark any memories for me. I didn't have any luck. I did see Sasuke though," I said. Kakashi didn't ask about him.

"Was that why you freaked?" he asked. I nodded.

"Yeah. I'm not sure if it was my memory or not. I mean, none of it involved me too much," I replied. Kakashi didn't say anything for awhile.

"What was it about?" he asked, finally breaking the silence.

"Two guys fighting. Their names were Itachi and Kyo. I dunno what happened between them, but Itachi called Kyo a traitor and killed him," I said. Kakashi just nodded. "When Kyo died he said something about me not betraying the clan. If I put bits and information together, I'm pretty sure Kyo is my brother and Itachi is Sasuke's."

"Yeah. They were good friends for awhile…" Kakashi stood. "I'm going to go examine the house. Stay out of trouble," he said and was gone. I frowned. I wasn't a trouble maker.


	2. Chapter 2

Again I only own Najoki and Kyo. So far I know it's not too intersting, but it gets better. Promise.

As I spent a week with my new team, I realized why Kakashi needed me. They really didn't like each other. We did a few stupid missions, like baby-sitting, cat finding, and crap like that until Naruto started complaining.

"All we do are these lame missions. Can't we do something more exciting?" he complained. I shook my head and sighed. Didn't he know we're supposed to do missions like this? After much complaining the Hokage gave in. So we got a C-ranked mission protecting an old man. Not much better, but it was a start. Of course all the old man did was complain too.

"I have a bunch of kids protecting me?" he asked, in a complaining tone of voice. I rolled my eyes. Old men were supposed to be more civilized, not childish. Naruto complained again so I tuned them out. Instead I thought more about what I'd seen in the abandoned house. I glanced at Sasuke. What did his question mean? Of course he ignored me. Sasuke did that to everyone apparently. I was so lost in thought; I didn't notice the kunai fly past my head until it was too late. I moved a little, but it still sliced the hair tie holding my hair. My light brown hair fell down to the back of my knees. Two freaks came out. Long story short they tore Kakashi to smithereens, Sasuke got a hero moment saving Naruto, (which he really didn't have to do), and it turned out Kakashi wasn't injured, and he saved us. So Kakashi was the real hero. (Sorry Sasuke.)

While I was still getting over the fact we were attacked and it ended that quickly, Sakura pointed out Naruto was bleeding. I looked over at him. He'd started freaking out. Sasuke came and stood by me.

"Naruto's not the only one. Najoki's bleeding too," he said. I looked at him. His eyes were on my cheek.

"I'll be fine," I said. Kakashi looked at me.

"Naruto, stop moving. There was poison in their claws," he said. Naruto stopped, but I could tell he was still freaking out. Kakashi then turned to Tazuna. "The question is why were they following us?" Tazuna looked between us.

After that a sharp pain hit my shoulder. I tried to make out what Tazuna said, but the pain distracted me. I looked at Sasuke. He was looking at me in confusion, but didn't let anyone else see. After a few moments, the pain went away. I sighed in relief. By then Kakashi was talking.

"The mission now sounds like more of an A ranked or B ranked mission. Now the question is do we go back to treat Naurto20and possibly Najoki's wounds, or do we continue?" he asked.

"I'll be fine. Poison doesn't bother me," I said. Kakashi nodded, since he knew that. Now Naruto decided to be an idiot. He took a kunai and stuck it in his hand. Blood fell on the ground. Was he trying to kill himself? Beside me, Sasuke shook his head.

"Idiot," he muttered. After Naruto was done giving his really dumb, unnecessary speech, he'd lost a good amount of blood. Kakashi bandaged his hand and we continued our mission. We arrived near a river and got on a little boat thing. As much as I hated it, I sat by Sasuke. The whole boat ride was awkward. When we got off, we walked into another forest. Now Naruto was really keyed up. He threw a kunai at every movement. The last one almost hit a rabbit. It was a white snow hair… Bad thing was it was in the middle of spring…

While I was thinking, Kakashi yelled for us to get down. We did and a demon wind shuriken flew over our heads. It caught in a tree and a man jumped on it. I recognized this guy too, but I couldn't remember from where.

"Zabuza," Kakashi said as we surrounded Tazuna. I looked over at Zabuza. He had short brown hair, black, hate filled eyes, and a white bandage covering his mouth. Instantly I had another flashback.

Zabuza was there in front of the abandoned house in the forest. Below him was a little girl. Her long brown fell in the snow and she was crying. He just stood over her and looked 'down.

"This is what happens to the weak. Your brother didn't stand a chance against the Uchihas. Don't screw up Najoki. If you do, you'll fall just like him," he said. My eyes widened. Was this the younger me? I walked closer and saw Kyo's dead body in the snow. He now looked peaceful. His brown hair was framing his face. Some one had put his hands over his blood wound. Judging by the little girl's hands, she did.

I didn't get to see what happened after that because I felt some one grab me and pull me with them. When I snapped back into reality, I saw it was Sasuke. His ebony eyes glanced down at my face. Kakashi was trapped in a water bubble. Had I missed a lot?

"We need your help. You're right, we can't do this alone. You have to help us," Sakura said. I looked around and saw a Zabuza clone. I looked back at Sakura.

"You stay there with Tazuna. I'll get the boys to help me," I said and gave her a reassuring smile. She smiled back. I turned to Sasuke and Naruto. "I'll distract him. You two talk." They both nodded. Why I became leader, I wasn't sure. I then turned to the Zabuza clone. _It's just a clone. Nothing more_, I thought. I sighed and ran towards it. It was ready and tried to hit me with the sword. I jumped behind him.

After a bit of fighting, I felt like collapsing. He'd slam me on the ground, send really hard punches close to my stomach, and got me by the neck once. I looked over towards the boys and didn't even notice Zabuza come at me. He hit me with a kunai right in the stomach. The boys looked toward me when Sakura screamed.

"I told you not to get weak," he said and moved away. Naruto took that chance to strike. Once Zabuza was distracted, Sasuke moved towards me. He draped the arm that wasn't gripping my stomach over his shoulder and took me to Sakura and Tazuna. Without a word, he set me down.

"Be careful Sasuke. Whatever stupid plan you and Naruto are planning, please be careful," I said. He nodded and went to stand by Naruto, who had just given up.

"Are you okay?" Sakura asked, bending down beside me. I looked at her. Her green eye held worry.

"I'm fine. It's just a minor wound," I said and smiled. She nodded. I looked back at the boys. Now Sasuke was getting pounded on. I bit my bottom lip. Silently, I prayed for my team to survive this. After that I blacked out.

I regained consciousness later on the floor of a strange house. I sat up quickly and sucked in a deep breath at the pain that shot through me.

"Do you forget you're injured?" Sasuke asked beside me. I looked over at him. He was looking at me with an odd expression. He looked worried, but tried to cover it up by trying to be mad.

"It only hurts a little bit," I replied. "How'd you guys do?" He looked away from me, worrying me.

"Only a few minor cuts and bruises. You got the worst of it," he said.

"So Kakashi's okay?" I asked. He nodded.

"Just concerned." That was all he said before Naruto and Sakura burst in. Sasuke made a bored face. I was not done talking to him.

"Are you okay?" Naruto asked, sitting by me. I nodded.

"Just a little sore," I said and smiled. The next to come in were Tazuna and a young woman with long black hair. Naruto ignored the fact they were there.

"You missed all the action. I set Kakashi free," he bragged. Sakura gave him a dirty look along with Sasuke.

"You wouldn't have been able to if Najoki wouldn't have stepped up and became leader," she snapped. I smiled weakly.

"I really didn't do anything. I just got hurt," I said. Kakashi stepped in then. Where were all these people coming from?

"Not true. You stepped up when you were needed," he said. I shrugged. "So are you up for training?" The young woman spoke up.

"She just woke up!" she said. I looked at her.

"I'm okay. Plus trainings the only way I can get better," I said. She sighed. I threw off the covers and stood up. "Ready." Kakashi smiled. We all filed out to the woods and when Kakashi told us what we were doing, I frowned. We were using charka to climb trees. I knew how to do that already. Sakura and I were the first to get done so we sat. The boys were slower.

When we left the boys were still working on the lesson, so we left them behind. They burst in sometime at dinner. Of course they competed to see who ate more. When they threw up, I left. I went to sit in the trees, wanting another flashback. Nothing happened. After a little while Sasuke climbed up. I saw him deciding whether to say or not. He stayed.

"Why are you up here?" I asked. He shrugged.

"I thought I'd be alone. Apparently not," he said. It was quite for awhile then he asked, "Do you really not remember me at all?" I nodded.

"I can't remember anything," I said. "Well except for the two memory flashes I had. One of our brothers fighting and Zabuza… Itachi killed Kyo." Sasuke nodded.

"He killed my whole clan. He was an ANBU and when Kyo went crazy he was supposed to check him out… I don't know what he found out, but he killed Kyo for it. He was going to kill you, but didn't. You were there… You ran and told me what happened. Kyo like to fake death, so I told you to go make sure… I never saw you after that," he said. He was hurt. "We were best friends, so when my clan as killed I went looking for you, but you were gone. You were the only person I had left."

"I'm so sorry. I didn't know," I said. He looked at me with hate filled eyes.

"You're just like your brother. The only thing you're good for is deceiving people," he said, climbed down, and walked off.


	3. Chapter 3

**Sorry it's kinda taking a little long. It's hard to update with my parents buzzing around. **

Chp 3

The next day we went with Tazuna to the bridge he was building. Since Sasuke and I were hostile towards each other, Sakura walked between us. She knew something was up, but she didn't say anything. When we got there, the workers were all sprawled out on the ground. There was a heavy mist starting. Tazuna was shocked, but my guard automatically went up. At the sight I saw myself surrounded by bodies, different than the ones surrounding us now. Yellow took over the blue in my eyes and I looked demented. When I whimpered, I felt a hand on my shoulder. The vision went away and surprisingly it was Sasuke. We gathered around Tazuna and I could see Sasuke tremble in the corner of my eye.

"I see the boys still trembling," Zabuza's voice said. I looked around and saw Sasuke smirk.

"I'm trembling with excitement," he said. I smiled.

"He's all yours, Sasuke," Kakashi said. I spotted Zabuza and a masked person in front of us. Sasuke charged at Zabuza, but the masked person stepped up. At first I though it was a boy, but when it spoke, I thought it was a girl… What was that thing?

They fought for awhile and I'll admit Sasuke was good. When Kakashi told Zabuza Sasuke was the only one of his clan left, I made a face. He wasn't lying. After awhile the jutsu that the masked person was about to use. I ran over to Sasuke, ignoring Kakashi's command. He couldn't be caught in that alone. I wouldn't allow it. Zabuza tried to stop me, but Kakashi helped me.

"Go," he said. We made eye contact for awhile and I smiled. He knew what it was too. I ran to Sasuke's side.

"Watch my back and I'll watch yours," I said. He nodded. Mirrors enclosed us and we stood back to back. When Haku appeared in the mirrors, we'd throw kunai when it came out. After a bit we were tired. It took that moment to strike. It threw needles that tore our clothes and broke the skin. It reopened my cheek wound. Both Sasuke and I fell.

"So much for that plan," Sasuke said. As soon as he said that, a puff of smoke arose. When it cleared, there stood Naruto. Sasuke sat up with a frown. He helped me sit up and by that time, Naruto was there.

"You idiot! We already have two of us trapped here," I said. Naruto rolled his eyes. After that he and Sasuke got into an argument, giving Haku a perfect time to strike. I jumped in the way, which made all the needles going into three, go into one. After that, I let darkness take hold.

**Sasuke's POV**

When Najoki collapsed beside us, Naruto and I both looked away from each other to her. Naruto froze, but I went closer to her. She was lying on her side, with her long brown hair covering her face and the majority of her body. Since she wore shorts, the majority of her legs were scratched up. I flipped her over. Blood dripped down from her mouth. She was still warm, but I could feel her get colder. Needles covered a lot of her body. I took off her yellow jacket and put her on my back.

I growled a bit. Just because she had betrayed me, it didn't mean I would betray her. She was still, in a way, the same five year old girl that followed me. She was still my best friend. It wasn't right for her to die because Naruto and I were being competitive and stupid. Whatever Naruto saw in my face stopped him from saying whatever he was going to say.

"Najoki's growing colder by the second. I don't know if she'll live or not, but we can't leave her. She's our teammate. We're going to have to use the teamwork she taught us to get out of here," I said. He nodded. "Run the other way." H didn't argue. He just did it. After I tied Najoki's jacket around us I ran the opposite way of Naruto. It didn't work. We still got hit. Najoki did too, lessening her chance to live. I growled and kicked water just as Haku moved from mirror to mirror. I could see it.

After I activated the sharingan, I followed the movements better. That's how I knew what Haku was planning. I laid Najoki down, quickly, but gently on the ground. I knew what I was getting myself into. I ran in front of Naruto jut in time. Now I was hit with all the needles. I smiled a little. At least if Najoki died, I'd go with her. It was our five and seven year old dream, to die together.

Naruto caught me as I fell. When I spoke to him, I could see he wasn't taking what I was saying too well. My eyes filled with tears as I spoke. I'm sure his did too. After that I blacked out.

**Najoki's POV again**

_I...I didn't die_, I thought as I felt the cold ground at my back. I opened my eyes and saw the mist was close to gone. I heard crying and sat up. Sakura was leaning over, crying over some one… I walked over and fell to my knees when I saw who. Sasuke. Tazuna noticed me. Tears filled my eyes and fell when I blinked. Now Sakura noticed me. I looked down at his body. It looked lifeless. I closed my eyes and heard Sasuke's voice.

"Sakura… That hurts," he said. My eyes flew open. He wasn't looking at her. He was looking at me. He sat up and she hugged him. He flinched. She got up after a little bit and I moved over to him.

"What happened?" I asked.

"After you fell, I took over. I threw you on my back and tried to save us. Haku went after Naruto, so I acted. I failed," he said. I threw my arms around him, crying. Surprisingly, he hugged back.

"Why?" I asked.

"You told us not to abandon a teammate. I didn't," he said.

"I didn't say get yourself killed," I replied. I felt something against my cheek.

"I can't hold a grudge against you. I don't care anymore. I couldn't bear to lose you," he said and let me go. I shivered. It was cold. Sasuke got my jacket and put it around my shoulders.

"Thanks," I muttered. He nodded. After that I broke into a coughing fit. I heard Sasuke call my name and blacked out.

I woke up being carried. I groaned a bit and heard someone chuckle. I opened my eyes, but closed them again because the light hurt my eyes.

"It sounds like she's awake," Kakashi's voice said. I groaned again. The person carrying me pushed me up a little on their back.

"The light hurts my eyes," I said softly.

"I'll get you home as soon as I can, okay?" Sasuke asked, just as softly. He was the one carrying me. I buried my face in his shoulder and neck. "Go back to sleep. The light won't bother you then." I didn't reply. Instead I did what he told me to.

The next time I woke up, I was on a bed. The light still hurt, but I needed to see. I looked around and saw Sasuke just as he walked in.

"Does the light still hurt?" he asked. I bit my lip, but nodded. He walked over and closed the blinds, making the room darker. "Any better?" I nodded.

"Where am I?" I asked. He sat on the bed beside me and pressed his hand to my head. It was cool so I pressed my head more into it.

"You're at my house. Kakashi didn't want you alone in your condition, so I agreed to let you stay. You're really warm," he said and moved his hand.

"I don't feel that way," I said and shivered again. He just nodded and stood up. When he turned to walk away, I grabbed his hand. "Don't go." He looked at me. For once, his eyes weren't empty. Instead they held hurt. He sat back down. "I…I don't want to be alone," I said. I hated feeling helpless. Sasuke noticed.

"This is the first time you've let your wall down. Don't be afraid to be alone. Plus you're asleep a lot of the time, so it's not like it matters. You'll be okay," he said. I shook my head violently.

"I don't care. I just don't want to be alone now," I said. He sighed. I was being difficult and I knew it. This wasn't the first time I was this sick. I knew there was another time and I had a feeling things didn't turn out well. Sasuke laid me back down and sat next to me.

"I won't leave. I'll be here. Just go to sleep," he said. I looked at him. He looked tired and surprisingly worried. I yawned and curled up in a ball. Sasuke gave me a confused look. I ignored him and went back to sleep.

In my dream I was back at the scene with Zabuza. The little girl near him was still crying. He turned and walked off. She didn't care. I walked close to her and saw a bruise starting to form on her cheek. Did he hit her? A hissy voice came, freezing both the little girl and me.

"Little Najoki, there's no reason to cry. Kyo did what he was supposed to. He died a hero. You should be proud of him. Besides you don't want to let him down. Come with me. It's what he wanted," it said. The little girl turned around.

"No," she said. The snake man in front of us didn't like that. He smiled evilly and his long neck expanded and his face went forward and landed on the little girl's shoulder. He bit her, making her scream cut off. My shoulder burned wildly. Now I fell and screamed. The pain was too much…

Someone shook me awake and I tried to hit them. Sasuke grabbed my hand and pinned me to the bed. I was still thrashing. I was also crying. My breathing was unsteady and I kept whimpering.

"Najoki, it's okay. Stop fighting me. You're safe," he said, soothingly. I calmed down a little. He let go of my hand and pulled me to him. I grabbed his shirt and buried my face in his chest. Whether he realized it or not, one of his hands was running through my hair. The other was around my waist. "Want to explain what that was about?" he asked.

"No," I said as softly as I could. He dropped it. I don't know what made him, but he did.

"You've gotten worse. I can tell just by your head on my chest that your fevers gotten higher," he said. I didn't care.

"I don't care. This thing could kill me and I still wouldn't care," I said. The hand in my hair froze. His grip around me tightened.

"I would," he said. I looked up. At first he didn't look at me, but when he noticed I was looking at him, he looked down. His eyes told me he would. "I won't lose you again." By the way he said it, I meant it.

"You're not as big a jerk as usual," I said. For the first time since I'd been on the squad, he smiled.

"I actually like you. Besides it's not fair to be a jerk to you while you're sick," he said. I buried my face in his chest again. He rested his head on mine. His hands resumed running through my hair, putting me to sleep.


End file.
